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Does the expense get better or worse?

Posted: Sun Mar 16, 2014 6:44 pm
by kittymum
We've just received a whole load of bumpf through from the school my ds will be starting at (state school).

I thought it was going to be expensive but I was a little bit :shock: :shock: at the £25 for a locker pa (where I work it's only a £5), £110 for the basic compulsory sports kit (doesn't include trainers / boots), plus potentially several hundred £'s for extra curricular sports, summer camps etc oh and he has to have a google Chromebook.

I'm slightly nervous as to how much all the school trips etc are going to be!

Does it get better once they've started or should I prepare myself for the worst?

Re: Does the expense get better or worse?

Posted: Sun Mar 16, 2014 6:57 pm
by Tinkers
:shock:
That's a lot.

DD got provided with a a padlock for her locker, that she has to give back when she leaves the school (or we get charged) but haven't had to pay anything.

No chromebook or equivalent to pay for.

Re: Does the expense get better or worse?

Posted: Sun Mar 16, 2014 7:04 pm
by kittymum
We're just over the border from you so lockers are obviously pricier here :lol: I'm contemplating making him sleep in the locker over night to get our monies worth from it (AND I need to pay for it by the end of the month :shock: )

Re: Does the expense get better or worse?

Posted: Sun Mar 16, 2014 7:05 pm
by southbucks3
Most school trips are reasonably priced, and infrequent.
Big school "holidays" are voluntary
Subject based foreign trips are a killer I have been told, none here yet.
The canteen food is very highly priced, I give my ds a fiver a week, and a packed lunch each day.
We have to pay for an ipad :shock: at rgs
The locker key, I agree is a rip off...I resent the 25 pounds a year.
You will be asked for a few hundred quid from just about every sport he does, and be hassled by world challenge students, all voluntary of course, you will also be asked to pay an annual good will direct debit of a few hundred quid. You need a strong will power.
You will also have bus fares
Termly fees for cooking or dt project materials
Termly disco tickets
French comic subscriptions...don't bother, they are pretty awful
Oh and I don't know about billys, but rgs has different coloured jumpers for sports and music team/band members at 20 pounds.
Buy plastic wallets for all subjects...Amazon have patterned ones in sets of 5
Do not buy a new bag until he has decided the style everyone else has, if you do get a cheap one to start with.
Do not buy the school gym bag....they all look the same, how unhelpful is that!
Do not buy an expensive mouthguard if you anticipate he will get a brace soon and need a very expensive mouthguard.
Do not lose locker key spare, or bus pass!

Cannot think of much else

Edited....set of drawing pencils for art....You can buy them from "the works" in wycombe, and buy several memory sticks (they get nicked), and lots of printer cartridges.

Re: Does the expense get better or worse?

Posted: Sun Mar 16, 2014 7:18 pm
by tonbridgemum
A fiver a day AND a packed lunch southbucks :shock: :shock: :shock: Really!!!
Blimey, my DS has to put up with a sandwich and an apple most days. Gosh I'm surprised he hasn't reported me to Social services. I seriously need to check with him he isn't starving to death. :?

Re: Does the expense get better or worse?

Posted: Sun Mar 16, 2014 7:37 pm
by kenyancowgirl
We have a compulsory residential in the first term of Y7 and also a week long residential (compulsory) in Y8 - these are £150 and £350 respectively. I did a rough count up and figured the first year cost us at least £1000 (not including the canteen card where my ds1 has got lunch down to £3 a day) - we have found that specialist rugby gear gets more expensive (£200 for base layers and body armour, £50 mouth guard, £70 boots etc etc) but that is because our son plays at quite a high level. We are selective about trips - as southbucks says, it's hard to avoid the subject specific ones as I think the boys miss out if they don't go and, certainly, in Geography it forms the basis of the field research. It's all the little £15 art trips and £35 Black Country Museum and £10 Gurdwara trips that suddenly all add up! As well as the fact that the bus pass only covers for one bus at the beginning and end of the day but, obviously, there are before and after school essential clubs like rugby skills or training so there is a big time/fuel cost dropping off and picking up as well!! And, yes, the expectation is that everyone pays the direct debit "voluntary" contribution - and, believe me, the head knows who doesn't!!

So...yes...definitely cheaper than private school but there is still a cost - fundamentally, there is in any state school in Britain as budgets have been pared down and expectations continue to rise. Both my boys are/will be attending an outstanding GS - I think relatively, it is still a small price to pay, but you do have to pick and choose what is essential.

Re: Does the expense get better or worse?

Posted: Sun Mar 16, 2014 7:48 pm
by southbucks3
tonbridgemum wrote:A fiver a day AND a packed lunch southbucks :shock: :shock: :shock: Really!!!
Blimey, my DS has to put up with a sandwich and an apple most days. Gosh I'm surprised he hasn't reported me to Social services. I seriously need to check with him he isn't starving to death. :?

No no no...My typo..a fiver a week, and a packed lunch. However his mate does get a fiver a day and money on his fingerprint :shock:

However, a sandwich and an apple, would just about fill one of his legs up for lunch. :lol:

Re: Does the expense get better or worse?

Posted: Sun Mar 16, 2014 7:57 pm
by southbucks3
Interestingly the upper does a compulsory residential trip, but not our grammar. The upper also has a much bigger push on the ski trip. They also make school track suits compulsory, where as rgs just asks for plain track suit, or school track suit.

Re: Does the expense get better or worse?

Posted: Sun Mar 16, 2014 7:59 pm
by moseleymum
Seems like a lot to me :shock: I know some people say an AP at an Indie can cost less than a free Grammar as they are given help for compulsory trips and a uniform allowance. At my son's indie, there's no locker fee, you just have to provide your own padlock which is fair enough as it's yours to keep anyway.

At DD's grammar, letters are phrased as "parents are requested to make a contribution of £x" but I'm fairly sure you don't have to, and your child could still go if there were enough paying.

Re: Does the expense get better or worse?

Posted: Sun Mar 16, 2014 8:00 pm
by doodles
Gosh I thought it was expensive here down south but Google chrome thingies are a whole new level!

Both my DS's play high level rugby and apart from very expensive boots we get baselayers etc in the sales. The worst thing is the blazer, the last one was £128, and because my DS's are very different shapes there's no handing it down!

However, having come up through the prep school system our gs is very undemanding and reasonable. The more expensive "holiday" type trips are completely voluntary and the "compulsory" year group trips are very good value.